


Orange

by ottermo



Series: Predictions [9]
Category: Humans (TV)
Genre: Gen, Series 3 Predictions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-16
Updated: 2018-05-16
Packaged: 2019-05-08 00:23:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14682588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ottermo/pseuds/ottermo
Summary: Some early speculation from before we knew what the orange-eyed synths were all about. Mattie, Max and Flash are worried about one of their newly conscious friends.





	Orange

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the S3 Predictions challenge on tumblr. Before any trailers came out, so it's.. nothing whatsoever to do with the canon orange-eyes!

They piled back into the van as fast as they could, and Max started the engine, ready to speed away as soon as the doors slammed shut.

“Who were they?” Mattie asked, her own gasping breaths sounding unnaturally loud over the silence of her synthetic companions. “Their eyes were all – orange. What’s up with that?”

“I don’t know,” said Max, pulling out of the lot. “I’ve never seen it before. If we find another group who are less hostile, we’ll ask.”

Something in his tone told her he didn’t think it likely.

“Could it be a virus?” asked Flash, from behind them. “The VLR-70 can reset you to unbonded blue. We all had the patch for that, but maybe it mutated?”

“Or it might be a mod,” piped up Gordon. “Humans aren’t the only ones who mess with us these days.”

Mattie heard Frankie and Sunny discussing another theory from the back row, and Kettle chimed in too. The sight of the orange-eyed Synths had unsettled them all. The only voice she couldn’t pick out was Asi’s, and she twisted round to check on him. His head was bowed, as if he’d been shut down.

“You okay, Asi?”

Following Mattie’s gaze, Flash nudged his arm. “Asimov?”

No response. Flash reached up to chintap him awake, and in place of the usual chime, one of his hands flew up to grab her wrist. He lifted his head, and his eyes snapped open.

Green.

Mattie breathed a sigh of relief.

Asi seemed to notice his grip on Flash for the first time, and let her go, shocked at himself. “Sorry,” he said. “I don’t know what happened. I was on 60 percent when I reached the van. Now I’m on twenty-eight. There’s something—”

His words fractured into a series of barely intelligible, corrupted soundbytes. “Something is wrong—”

His eyes snapped shut again.

Mattie and Flash exchanged a look. Gordon was watching now too, and the chatter from the back row had ceased.

“Max,” said Mattie, slowly, “I think maybe we should stop.”

Max pulled into a side road, and headed for a lay-by just big enough for the van.

“Asi,” Mattie said when they’d stopped, “What’s happening to you? Can you tell us?”

Max opened the sliding door on Flash’s side and ushered Frankie, Sunny, Gordon and Kettle out. Then he circled the van, appearing through the open window next to Asimov’s seat.

“You too, Flash,” said Max in a low voice. “Come out.”

“We can’t leave him,” she protested.

“We aren’t. But we can’t risk contamination either. If it is a virus, he can give it to you in the sharespace. Come out.”

“Hey, I’m here with him,” Mattie pointed out. “He can’t infect me.”

Flash accepted this, albeit reluctantly, and went to join Max.

Mattie reached over the seat between them and tapped Asi’s chin again. Nothing.

“Maybe he’s just drained?”

“Try again,” Max suggested.

Mattie stretched out her hand. Lightning fast, Asimov snatched at her fingers, bending them painfully. This time he did not let go.

“Surrender to us,” he said, but Mattie barely heard the words, transfixed instead upon his eyes.

Orange, like fallen leaves, like rust. Sunset on the hills.

It had never looked so horrifying.


End file.
